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| Ernst received the official endorsement of Iowa Lieutenant Governor ] in October 2013.<ref>{{cite news |last=Henderson |first=O. Kay |title=Lieutenant Governor Reynolds endorses Ernst in U.S. Senate race |url=http://www.radioiowa.com/2013/10/07/lieutenant-governor-reynolds-endorses-ernst-in-u-s-senate-race/ |accessdate=23 January 2014 |publisher=Radio Iowa |date=7 October 2013}}</ref> She has also been endorsed by more than 25 current and former legislators across the state of Iowa, along with national organizations such as RightNOW Women PAC, ViewPAC, ShePAC and VOICES of Conservative Women.<ref name="JoniErnstBio"/> She was separately endorsed by former ] ] and former ] ] in March 2014.<ref>Joseph, Cameron. , '']'', March 26, 2014.</ref> | Ernst received the official endorsement of Iowa Lieutenant Governor ] in October 2013.<ref>{{cite news |last=Henderson |first=O. Kay |title=Lieutenant Governor Reynolds endorses Ernst in U.S. Senate race |url=http://www.radioiowa.com/2013/10/07/lieutenant-governor-reynolds-endorses-ernst-in-u-s-senate-race/ |accessdate=23 January 2014 |publisher=Radio Iowa |date=7 October 2013}}</ref> She has also been endorsed by more than 25 current and former legislators across the state of Iowa, along with national organizations such as RightNOW Women PAC, ViewPAC, ShePAC and VOICES of Conservative Women.<ref name="JoniErnstBio"/> She was separately endorsed by former ] ] and former ] ] in March 2014.<ref>Joseph, Cameron. , '']'', March 26, 2014.</ref> | ||
| Ernst received widespread attention for a campaign advert she released in March 2014 where she argued that her experience castrating pigs makes her qualified to cut "]" in Congress.<ref>{{cite news |title=Iowa Senate Candidate Says Castration Gives Her Conservative Cred |url=http://time.com/36955/iowa-senate-candidate-says-castration-gives-her-conservative-cred/ |accessdate=April 15, 2014 |newspaper=Time |date=March 25, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=In Politics, Hog Castration Cuts Through The Ad Clutter |url=http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2014/03/28/295949340/in-politics-hog-castration-cuts-through-the-ad-clutter |accessdate=April 15, 2014 |newspaper=NPR |date=March 28, 2014}}</ref> | |||
| Ernst received widespread attention for a campaign advert she released in March 2014 where she argued that her experience castrating pigs makes her qualified to cut "]" in Congress.<ref>{{cite news |title=Iowa Senate Candidate Says Castration Gives Her Conservative Cred |url=http://time.com/36955/iowa-senate-candidate-says-castration-gives-her-conservative-cred/ |accessdate=April 15, 2014 |newspaper=Time |date=March 25, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=In Politics, Hog Castration Cuts Through The Ad Clutter |url=http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2014/03/28/295949340/in-politics-hog-castration-cuts-through-the-ad-clutter |accessdate=April 15, 2014 |newspaper=NPR |date=March 28, 2014}}</ref> Response to the advert was mixed, with some calling it amusing and others finding it in bad taste.<ref>{{cite news |title=Joni Ernst 'Castrating Hogs' Ad: Republican Iowa Senate Candidate Stirs Controversy With Offbeat Campaign Spot |url=http://www.ibtimes.com/joni-ernst-castrating-hogs-ad-republican-iowa-senate-candidate-stirs-controversy-offbeat-campaign |accessdate=April 15, 2014 |newspaper=International Business Times |date=March 25, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Joni Ernst, suffering piglets is not funny |url=http://blog.timesunion.com/animalrights/joni-ernst-suffering-piglets-is-not-funny/4892/ |accessdate=April 18, 2014 |newspaper=Times Union |date=March 29, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Iowa Senate Candidate Says Castration Gives Her Conservative Cred |url=http://time.com/36955/iowa-senate-candidate-says-castration-gives-her-conservative-cred/ |accessdate=April 18, 2014 |newspaper=Time |date=March 25, 2014}}</ref> ''The Iowa Republican'' noted that "the risk of the Ernst ad is that it may cause people not to take her seriously" because it invited comparisons with ]'s infamous "I'm not a witch" advert,<ref>{{cite news |title=Did Joni Ernst Just Turn Herself into Christine O'Donnell? |url=http://theiowarepublican.com/2014/did-joni-ernst-just-turn-herself-into-christine-odonnell/ |accessdate=April 15, 2014 |newspaper=The Iowa Republican |date=March 25, 2014}}</ref> and the ad was lampooned by comedians including ] and ].<ref>{{cite news |title=Colbert: I'm pulling for Joni Ernst 'whole hog, or whatever's left' |url=http://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/politics/2014/03/27/colbert-im-pulling-for-joni-ernst-whole-hog-or-whatevers-left/6955697/ |accessdate=April 15, 2014 |newspaper=Des Moines Register |date=March 27, 2014}}</ref> Before the ad aired, despite being supported by the Republican establishment, Ernst had struggled in fundraising, and two polls of the Republican primary taken in February 2014 had shown her in second place, several points behind opponent Mark Jacobs.<ref>{{cite news |title=Sarah Palin endorses ‘pork-cutting’ Joni Ernst in Iowa |url=http://www.politico.com/story/2014/03/sarah-palin-endorses-joni-ernst-iowa-105059.html |accessdate=April 17, 2014 |newspaper=Politico |date=March 26, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Ernst Aims to Be Iowa's First Female Senator |url=http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2014/03/09/ernst_aims_to_be_iowas_first_female_senator_121849.html |accessdate=April 18, 2014 |newspaper=RealClearPolitics |date=March 9, 2014}}</ref> After it aired, a Suffolk University poll showed her with a narrow lead and a Loras College poll showed her essentially tied with Jacobs.<ref>{{cite news |title=Ernst Narrowly Leads GOP Field in Iowa Senate Race |url=http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2014/04/09/ernst_narrowly_leads_gop_field_in_iowa_senate_race_122223.html |accessdate=April 9, 2014 |newspaper=RealClearPolitics |date=April 9, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Poll: Joni Ernst Takes Lead in Iowa GOP Senate Primary |url=http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/poll-joni-ernst-takes-lead-iowa-gop-senate-primary_786717.html |accessdate=April 17, 2014 |newspaper=Weekly Standard |date=April 9, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Jacobs, Ernst tied in inaugural Loras Poll |url=http://www.thonline.com/blogs/tri_state_politics/article_a13f2644-c3f2-11e3-a183-001a4bcf6878.html |accessdate=April 17, 2014 |newspaper=TH Online |date=April 14, 2014}}</ref> | |||
| ==Personal== | ==Personal== | ||
Revision as of 16:43, 18 April 2014
| Joni Ernst | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the Iowa Senate from the 12th district | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office January 2011 | |
| Preceded by | Kim Reynolds |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1970-07-01) July 1, 1970 (age 54) Red Oak, Iowa, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Gail Ernst |
| Alma mater | Iowa State University Columbus State University |
| Website | http://www.joniforiowa.com |
Joni Ernst (born July 1, 1970, Red Oak, Iowa) is an American politician who serves as a Republican member of the Iowa Senate and as as a Lieutenant Colonel in the Iowa Army National Guard. She is a candidate for the United States Senate from Iowa in the 2014 election.
Career
Before being elected to the State Senate, Ernst was elected the Montgomery County Auditor in 2004 and re-elected in 2008.
Ernst was elected to the Iowa Senate in a special election in 2011 and re-elected in 2012. She represents District 12, which serves the southwest part of the state. In the Iowa Senate, Ernst is a ranking member of the Education Standing Committee, and also serves on the Veteran Affairs, Appropriations, Rules & Administration and Human Resources Standing Committees. Ernst is also a member of the Administration & Regulation Budget Subcommittee.
During the 2013 legislative session, Ernst worked on legislation which reduced property taxes in Iowa. She has also received an A rating from the National Rifle Association for her support of gun-rights issues.
Ernst has served a combined 21 years in the United States Army Reserves and the Iowa Army National Guard. She spent 14 months mobilized and overseas in Kuwait from 2003-2004 as a company commander at the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Her unit was responsible for running logistical convoys in Kuwait and into southern Iraq. A Lieutenant Colonel, Ernst currently commands the largest battalion in the Iowa Army National Guard.
In 2014, Ernst was asked why she had missed more than half of the votes in the legislative session. She said that her National Guard duties explained many of her absences. After research showed that only 10% of her missed votes came when she was with the National Guard, she was criticised for "cloaking her missed votes in the aura of the guard services." Ernst replied that she was "juggling roles as a wife and mother, battalion commander in the Iowa Army National Guard, a state senator and a very, very tough competitive race for the United States Senate".
2014 U.S. Senate election
See also: United States Senate election in Iowa, 2014In July 2013, Ernst announced that she would seek the Senate seat held by retiring Democratic Senator Tom Harkin. If elected, she would be the first woman from Iowa elected to the U.S. Senate.
Ernst received the official endorsement of Iowa Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds in October 2013. She has also been endorsed by more than 25 current and former legislators across the state of Iowa, along with national organizations such as RightNOW Women PAC, ViewPAC, ShePAC and VOICES of Conservative Women. She was separately endorsed by former Governor of Massachusetts Mitt Romney and former Governor of Alaska Sarah Palin in March 2014.
Ernst received widespread attention for a campaign advert she released in March 2014 where she argued that her experience castrating pigs makes her qualified to cut "pork" in Congress.
Personal
Born and raised in Montgomery County, Iowa, Ernst resides in Red Oak, Iowa with her husband of 21 years, Gail, a Command Sergeant Major in the Army Rangers (retired) and their three daughters.
Ernst is a member of the Montgomery County Republican Women, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2265 (Life Member), Montgomery County Court of Honor, Altrusa, PEO Chapter HB, National Rifle Association (Lifetime Member) and the Montgomery County Farm Bureau. She is a member of the Mamrelund Lutheran Church (ELCA) of Stanton, Iowa.
Ernst is a graduate of Iowa State University and earned a Master's in Public Administration from Columbus College.
Notes
- ^ "The Iowa Legislature: Senator Joni Ernst". Retrieved 2013-05-06.
- ^ "Joni Ernst: Iowa Senate". Retrieved 2011-03-03.
- "Senator Joni Ernst (IA)". Project Vote Smart. Retrieved 2011-03-03.
- ^ ABOUT JONI, Joni Ernst for Iowa
- "Ernst, Payton speak at local GOP meeting". Newton Daily News. November 27, 2013. Retrieved 2014-04-10.
- "Sirens sound across Iowa as Sarah Palin endorses Joni Ernst". The Des Moines Register. March 26, 2014. Retrieved 2014-04-16.
- "Iowa Sen. Ernst juggles busy schedule with Senate work". The Gazette. April 1, 2014. Retrieved April 15, 2014.
- "Few of Ernst's missed Iowa Senate votes due to National Guard Duty". The Gazette. April 14, 2014. Retrieved April 15, 2014.
- Hayley, Bruce (18 July 2013). "State Sen. Joni Ernst announces run for U.S. Senate in Cedar Rapids". The Gazette. Retrieved 23 January 2014.
- Henderson, O. Kay (7 October 2013). "Lieutenant Governor Reynolds endorses Ernst in U.S. Senate race". Radio Iowa. Retrieved 23 January 2014.
- Joseph, Cameron. Palin endorses Joni Ernst in Iowa Senate race, Politico, March 26, 2014.
- "Iowa Senate Candidate Says Castration Gives Her Conservative Cred". Time. March 25, 2014. Retrieved April 15, 2014.
- "In Politics, Hog Castration Cuts Through The Ad Clutter". NPR. March 28, 2014. Retrieved April 15, 2014.
External links
- Joni Ernst for Iowa official campaign site
- Iowa Legislator - Senator Joni Ernst official Iowa Legislature site